Record year for new start-up businesses in Northamptonshire as report puts county 23rd in UK

A record number of new companies was registered in Northamptonshire in the last year, according to a new report, but thousands of firms also went out of business.

The study, based on figures from Companies House and the Office of National Statistics, showed that 6,347 businesses launched in the county but 3,341 firms were dissolved over the past 12 months.

In a breakdown of the county, 2,670 firms were formed in Northampton, 724 in Kettering, 679 in South Northamptonshire, 665 in Daventry, 611 in Wellingborough, 504 in East Northamptonshire and 494 in Corby. Figures are not available for a breakdown of where companies were dissolved.

The report was complied by the website www.informdirect.co.uk.

Northamptonshire was 23rd across the country for new start-ups. It was below the national average of 9.7 for new businesses per 1,000 people at 9.1, and the report said there was a total of 39,638 businesses registered in Northamptonshire by the end of 2015, an increase of 9.4 percent compared to 2014. In 2011 the total number of registered businesses was 28,091.

The report also reveals that 612,565 firms were formed across the United Kingdom - up from 586,784 the year before.

Of those, 551,886 companies were in England, 34,711 in Scotland, 14,689 in Wales and 7,254 in Northern Ireland.

Henry Catchpole, managing director of Inform Direct said: “Our dynamic economy and business-friendly environment are the reasons there is a ‘Great’ in Great Britain.

“All around the world, governments are spending time and money to figure out the best way to foster an entrepreneurial culture that helps boost the economy.

“But here in the UK, our politicians can nurture this business mentality that has established itself organically.

“Of course London has always stormed ahead in business but our figures from 2015 demonstrate that the rest of the UK is also displaying a growing confidence in entrepreneurialism.

“Northamptonshire has had a very successful year and the figures indicate a surge in entrepreneurialism in 2015 for this region.”

To see a more detailed picture of company formations in Northamptonshire – including a full ward breakdown, visit http://www.informdirect.co.uk/company-formations-2015/northamptonshire/